# Letting Them Rest



## novasurf (Feb 20, 2007)

What your rule of thumb when you receive your cigars? Do you smoke them right away or do you let them rest a bit? Or both?


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## Kayak_Rat (Nov 28, 2005)

Usually at least a week depending on time of year and where it is coming from.


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## RPB67 (Mar 26, 2005)

novasurf said:


> What your rule of thumb when you receive your cigars? Do you smoke them right away or do you let them rest a bit? Or both?


It all depends.

If its something rare and not the ordinary cigar, I let them rest to be sure they are ready to smoke.

If they are the everyday normal marca, I still let them rest but may smoke them OTT just to give them a try.


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## DETROITPHA357 (Jul 8, 2006)

RPB67 said:


> It all depends.
> 
> If its something rare and not the ordinary cigar, I let them rest to be sure they are ready to smoke.
> 
> If they are the everyday normal marca, I still let them rest but may smoke them OTT just to give them a try.


:tpd:either or:ss


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## dvickery (Jan 1, 2000)

novasurf

keeping in mind you need a large enough stash and patience to do what i do.

very rarely less than a year.

usually 3 years or more(i have a few boxes i bought in '00 that remain untried).

derrek


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## inept (Jun 22, 2006)

I have to admit that when I've got a new box in my hands, regardless of whether I bought it well cared for from a shop's humidor or whether it traveled a thousand miles to my home by mail, I simply cannot resist smoking one. I just can't help myself. After that, the time I wait may depend on the depth of my humidor. Could be weeks or months before I touch another.


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## PadronMe (Apr 26, 2005)

When in doubt, 
Padron out!


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## physiognomy (Feb 6, 2007)

This is a new dilemma for me... I have put them away for now, but I'm not sure I can last the night without trying one :ss


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## motownflip (Jul 26, 2006)

I usually wait a week or two. Just to let them stabilize a bit.


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## drdice (Sep 11, 2006)

I usually wait a bit....I read somewhere (might have been here!) to let them rest for at least 3 weeks if they've been shipped by air.

It's hard to do!

I've found that most of the time if I just can't wait and try one fresh out of the box....they usually are off and taste a little "soapy". The only ones I recall tasting great right away were PLPC's.

I made the same mistake 2 weeks ago with a box of Cohiba Exquisitos that arrived in my mail box. They just looked so damn good I couldn't help myself....big mistake as I couldn't smoke it more than a third of the way down...all I could taste was SOAP!!!!


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## Boston_Dude05 (Oct 10, 2006)

I usually let them rest. Have had bad experiences with plugged draws out of the box. Minimum rest of 30 days or more. However, I do like to inspect them.


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## Stonato~ (Dec 22, 2006)

If it's one I've never tried the temptation kills me but I still wait at least a month and take a benchmark, then let the rest sit and sample periodically for years to come. If it's a regular then I park 'em.


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## burninator (Jul 11, 2006)

I've heard that on the top of a box of Rafael Gonzalez cigars, it is advised that you either smoke them within a couple weeks of rolling or put them away for at least a year.

Sound advice.:cb


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## jgros001 (Jun 14, 2005)

All boxes sit for at least 30 days....some the wait continues.


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## mosesbotbol (Sep 21, 2005)

I smoke one right away unless it's a box I already have. From there, I put them into rotation which could be weeks before I get to them again either way. I see no harm in smoking them right away, but many vendors send them too humid for immediate smoking; in that instance, I just leave out for a couple of days.


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## Bigga Petey (Mar 25, 2005)

Typically the first one to get sacrificed from a new box gets a twenty-four hour hour reprieve after disembarking the brown truck. The siblings rest until what I feel might be the appropriate time to put them into rotation.


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## 68TriShield (May 15, 2006)

RPB67 said:


> It all depends.
> 
> If its something rare and not the ordinary cigar, I let them rest to be sure they are ready to smoke.
> 
> If they are the everyday normal marca, I still let them rest but may smoke them OTT just to give them a try.


yep...


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## audio1der (Mar 8, 2006)

The only time I won't smoke them is if I deem them too young and it would be a waste. Otherwise, they all go up in smoke.


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## Funnymantrip (Oct 28, 2004)

I would lie if I said I don't have at least one the first time I get a chance. Then usually another one a few days later. After the first couple I let them rest and get back to the rotation.


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## The Professor (Jul 20, 2006)

68TriShield said:


> yep...


double-yep.


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## cigarflip (Jul 4, 2004)

I let them rest and rest and rest some more. I want them to be cadavers when I'm ready to smoke them.:w


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## BP22 (Apr 13, 2006)

I try to wait a week, but sometimes a few hours is sufficient.


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## MeNimbus (Dec 18, 2006)

Smoke one and age the rest is always a good idea. Provided you have self control, which I do not.


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## Genevapics (Dec 29, 2006)

30-60 days, depending on the cigar. If it is Minuto, PC or similiar, then it gets 30 days and then we smoke one soon after. If it is an Esplendido or similiar, then it gets 60 days and then it only gets smoked on a special occasion... like when the DE Crew rolls over.

I agree with what someone here said, it also depends on how many smokes you have in your collection and can you allow these to get some rest before breaking into the box.


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## raisin (Dec 3, 2005)

It depends...


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## LasciviousXXX (Oct 12, 2004)

It depends on what I bought and how fast they get here....

If they are merely pedestrian smokes and they arrive in 1-2 days I'll have one right off the truck! If they take more than 7 days then they sleep for about a month or so.

If they are rare or vintage smokes then they sit till the time is right


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## RenoB (Oct 12, 2005)

If it's a 25 box, I rationalize that I'm letting 24 breath when I remove one from the top and the spacer from the bottom.


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## trogdor | the burninator (Jan 4, 2007)

burninator said:


> I've heard that on the top of a box of Rafael Gonzalez cigars, it is advised that you either smoke them within a couple weeks of rolling or put them away for at least a year.
> 
> Sound advice.:cb


i think i've heard that you want to smoke a freshly rolled cigar within days or let them sit for months. the reason being that if you wait too long, they build up in nitrogen levels or something like that and you can get sick. i don't know how much merit that has, never had a freshly rolled cigar, but i heard this in passing at a local b&m


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## stashu (Aug 12, 2006)

I always smoke one right away so that I have something to compare the others to after they've rested for awhile.

At least that's the excuse I give myself.


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## bassrocker (Oct 26, 2006)

I like to wait two weeks but some how I seem to smoke one , one day later.
Vintage cigars I like two wait a couple of months.
Now with wine , I drink it right away. :al

Mike


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## opus (Jun 21, 2005)

I smoke one after a month or so, if good I buy more. No sense in saving them for years without knowing if they are worth storing. Although many do come around after time.:2


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## Mister Moo (Sep 8, 2005)

68TriShield said:


> yep...


re-yep.


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## Todd W (Jan 9, 2008)

I just searched this thread out because I'm frothing at the mouth to smoke a Davidoff Millenium that I just got from Famous. I was a little surprised to see they didn't include any humidi-paks with this purchase. I use them a lot, and it probably never occurred to me (until I had some high-end stuff shipped). 

I got use to the way New Havana ships everything: Humidified and damn quick! This ground shipment took a little over a week, so now it looks like I'd be smart to put the Davidoffs away for a few weeks.

I also got a great deal on the Perdomo Lot 23's. You just can't beat the price on this daily smoker.


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## Todd W (Jan 9, 2008)

I just realized this was a Habanos thread.


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## beamish (Jan 10, 2007)

PadronMe said:


> When in doubt,
> Padron out!


The padron maduros age nicely :tu


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## Bruce (Dec 31, 1999)

Recent vintages (rare purchase for me) around 5 years. Rare/vintage; I will wait at least a month if not longer


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## Addiction (May 8, 2007)

I let them wait as long as I can stand to let them wait. I have a few boxes that I've yet to pull one out of and they have been here months, and there are others that I couldn't get the package all the way in the house before I was smoking one.

Heck I was looking for something last night and I moved a stack of stuff and found a stack of boxes I didn't even know I owned lol.


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## bonggoy (Mar 9, 2006)

Addiction said:


> I let them wait as long as I can stand to let them wait. I have a few boxes that I've yet to pull one out of and they have been here months, and there are others that I couldn't get the package all the way in the house before I was smoking one.
> 
> Heck I was looking for something last night and I moved a stack of stuff and *found a stack of boxes I didn't even know I owned* lol.


One of the few joys of collecting. 

I still have some cigars I bought more than a year ago that are still intact or one cigar missing. I also have cigars (QdO Corona and Du Depute for example) that I go through like a fat kid goes through donuts in a buffet table.


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## chibnkr (May 2, 2007)

cigarflip said:


> I let them rest and rest and rest some more. I want them to be cadavers when I'm ready to smoke them.:w


LOL! Same here. I don't generally crack "recent release" boxes...straight to the bottom of the humidor for long-term aging. However, I usually also pick-up a few singles to smoke near-term. With other stuff...it generally depends on whether they are over-humidified. If they are, it generally takes a few weeks in the MXT for them to dry-out.


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## Darrell (Aug 12, 2007)

I'll smoke one that day, 1 more in 6 months, etc.


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## Todd W (Jan 9, 2008)

Yeah, I here you Darrell. In this case, and like I said before, I excuse myself for trying to search this thread, then realizing later it was a habanos thread. 

I wanted to utilize the GD search engine. :ss

Anyway: in the case of these Davidoff's (which I feel are better than most CC's), I want to smoke one real bad!! And you actually know why (if you remember my Vegas story!), and I wish I could guess at it without being disappointed.

Unfortunately, I don't know what to do. They've suffered a long ground shipping from Famous, with no humidi-pak, and now I feel like I should wait 3 weeks or so.


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## M1903A1 (Jun 7, 2006)

On a related note...I have some sticks in 5ers, in cardboard boxes. Given upcoming events I doubt these particular ones will last long enough to matter, but...does leaving 'em in the cardboard pack make any difference?


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## M1903A1 (Jun 7, 2006)

chibnkr said:


> LOL! Same here. I don't generally crack "recent release" boxes...straight to the bottom of the humidor for long-term aging.


When you park 'em like that, do you at least inspect them once in a while?


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## NCRadioMan (Feb 28, 2005)

M1903A1 said:


> does leaving 'em in the cardboard pack make any difference?


I don't have alot of experiece with aging in the cardboard but here is what an FOG has to say about it.



Lamar said:


> I may be wierd on this one, but at the two year mark I notice a "papery" taste on cigars that I leave in cardboard coffins that fades out in another year or so.


I err on the side of caution and take them out.


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## M1903A1 (Jun 7, 2006)

NCRadioMan said:


> . I err on the side of caution and take them out.


Thanks...at the least I figured the exposure (or lack thereof) to spanish cedar would have an effect, but wasn't sure about cardboard.


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## Addiction (May 8, 2007)

M1903A1 said:


> When you park 'em like that, do you at least inspect them once in a while?


 It really depends for me. For example I inspected my QDOs and RS12s very closely, but I just got RyJ Hermosas and Monte Reservas that I didn't even open the plastic they were delivered to me in. There are some sources that I simply feel I don't have to inspect because they do that good a job.

Of course I do buy a considerable amount from private parties whom I know personally so take the advice above with a grian of salt.


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## Addiction (May 8, 2007)

M1903A1 said:


> On a related note...I have some sticks in 5ers, in cardboard boxes. Given upcoming events I doubt these particular ones will last long enough to matter, but...does leaving 'em in the cardboard pack make any difference?


 I typically take mine out, but the only cigars I've ever gotten in the cardboard boxes were Sig II Tubos so I'm pretty sure the effects of tubization (yeah thats right, I said it!!!!) cancel out any possible ill effects of the cardboard.


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## germantown rob (Sep 19, 2005)

I like to let them sit in *my climate* for 6 months so that the cigar and me are on the same page:tu.


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## SilverFox (Feb 19, 2008)

A minimum week before I try one after that it is purely if I am in the mood to try one. If it is good ROTT then I might get another box to age so that I don't smoke through them without having some for a time to be determined later as was the case with the Cohiba Sig II's

I try to circulate my smoking throughout my collection so many of my smokes don't get smoked for upwards of a month just by virtue of what I am in the mood for.


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## friz (Jul 24, 2008)

Does it matter if they are from your B&M or from the mail that dictates how long you age them. If you get them from your B&M would it be safe to say they have been aging there for at least a week


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## pnoon (Jun 8, 2005)

friz said:


> Does it matter if they are from your B&M or from the mail that dictates how long you age them. If you get them from your B&M would it be safe to say they have been aging there for at least a week


Aging does not happen in days or weeks.

What is being discussed here is "rest" or having cigars acclimate to your own storage conditions. B&M or via mail, it would really depend on how close to your own storage conditions they arrive in. For me, two weeks minimum.


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## friz (Jul 24, 2008)

Thanks pnoon. Sounds like good advise. Thats what I love about this site for someone like me who knows so little to learn from you guys



pnoon said:


> Aging does not happen in days or weeks.
> 
> What is being discussed here is "rest" or having cigars acclimate to your own storage conditions. B&M or via mail, it would really depend on how close to your own storage conditions they arrive in. For me, two weeks minimum.


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## ucla695 (Jun 27, 2006)

For shipments that I receive via mail, I let the rest for at least a month.


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## krisko (Jul 28, 2007)

I find that I'm only buying CC's that I've had before and know that I like. They'll rest until the existing stock dries up...typically 9-12 months.

Trying any cigar OTT is tempting but I've had more bad experiences than good. In the newbish days I would write off a cigar entirely after having one OTT but now I know better. To spare disappointment I always wait a minimum of a month.


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## Harpo (Oct 11, 2007)

Depends on when they were made. I don't really like smoking anything under a year old, as I'm 99% sure they'll be sick or taste like cack.


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